Munax Vuun
by Lordelai
Summary: A story of how Odahviing found a young and near dying Dragonborn in the middle of a snowstorm, somehow managed to raise her, lost her, and was reunited with her again, just not in the way he had planned. How he had learned to care about a mortal, the Dovah didn't know - after all, it had started out with an act of pity. AU. (ON HIATUS; UNKNOWN WHEN IT WILL END.)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I'm being pressured to write/upload this, goodness. This is why the LoTR fanfiction has not been updated in a while. I'll try to get chapter three up soon, I promise! (Of course, when I decide to start writing it-) Anyway, I love Skyrim to absolute death; it's my life right now. SO, I wanted to write an AU fic! This chapter includes a stupid 7-year-old child and a Dovah who only has pity for small mortal being. Upon anyone's request, things may be added/changed/edited. I would love if mistakes were pointed out, please! In that case, R&R!**

* * *

It was painfully cold.

Of course, it seemed like that was all she knew nowadays – cold, hunger, pain, fear. A seven-year-old child forced to stay out, living in a small cave underneath the Throat of the World.

At least, that was what she called the entire mountain, though the Throat of the World was the very top. The farthest she had ever gotten up was about a foot off of the ground, before she slipped and fell back down. After that, she hadn't really wanted to get any farther up.

All she had was a small blanket from her parents before they were killed, and a sack full of a few supplies she had stolen – a bandage, some bread and cheese, a water flask. Even though she had only been away from Riften for a week, she was already beginning to feel like she was gone forever.

Inside of the dark, damp cave, the young Nord girl coughed and brought her knees up to her chest, hugging her blanket. She definitely didn't know the time and she barely remembered the day, as her mind was more focused on the cold that nipped at her feet, nose and cheeks.

The only thing the child could see was the storm that was raging outside, throwing white this way and that. The cave she was in wasn't that far in; it was only large enough so that a fire pit could be fit along with a few people. She assumed that someone had come and mined this out a long time ago.

Shivering for – literally – the sixteenth time that day, she closed her eyes and wiggled her toes in an attempt to keep the feeling in them. When she had ran away from Riften, the only thing she was wearing were the clothes on her back and the boots on her feet. Now, her boots were torn and battered; and her clothes didn't offer any protection. This was the first real storm she had encountered, and she regretted leaving now that she was facing a challenge.

She reached over and opened her pack, frowning when she picked up the flask. It felt too light, and when she shook it, she couldn't hear anything sloshing around inside. With a loud sigh the child put it back in the pack and took out the last piece of bread, taking a small bite.

The storm outside was slowly but surely letting up, revealing a blurry view of the snow covered world outside. The child had saw an abandoned camp while she was on her way here, maybe it would have some good supplies that were left behind?

Though the storm was still dangerous, she stood up and draped her blanket over her shoulders. She wasn't entirely sure if she'd be able to find the camp, but she'd sure try.

As soon as she took a step out of that cave, the wind and snow began to attack her. Her hair was thrown into her face and her nose, fingers and toes were attacked viciously, leaving her entire body near frozen in a matter of seconds. Taking in a deep breath, she began to trudge through the snow.

She squinted and let out a yelp as she almost tripped when her foot was sucked into the snow. She quickly steadied herself, took in another deep breath of the freezing air, then lifted her foot and continued to make her way in the direction she thought the camp was in.

The snow at came up to her knees, and the Nord child feared that it would only get higher and higher. As she slowly marched through the snow, she realized that she didn't remember the exact location of the camp.

She stopped in her tracks, and then turned to look behind her. She couldn't even see the cave behind her anymore. All around her, all that could be seen was white.

"Oh no." She muttered under her breath, wiping her eyes with her sleeve in an attempt to get the snow out of them. Shaking her head, she began marching through the snow again, attempting to pick up her pace.

* * *

She continued to march for minutes on end, the minutes eventually turning into hours. She was beginning to get exhausted, and she then realized that she probably was not going to find this camp. She stopped and looked around, attempting to take in her surroundings – though there was nothing to take in except the white that fell to and covered the ground.

The Nord child could no longer feel her toes or her fingertips; it felt as though they had fallen off. Every breath she took was painful, the cold air entering her lungs like knives. No matter how much she objected, soon she found herself falling to her knees, coughing and groaning. Her face felt like it was on fire, and putting cold hands against it made it burn worse.

She was tired. Extremely tired. She had never, ever been out in the snow this long. Usually, her mother or father would come out and tell her to come inside to warm up near the fireplace. She had never known the true effects of such a harsh weather condition.

Her eyelids felt as though they had gained a thousand pounds, and she was struggling to keep them open.

"People die every year in the snow," her father would always say, "because they didn't prepare before they went out in it." Slowly, the realization came to her that she would be one of those idiotic people.

After a moment of staring blankly, she fell to her side, curling up in the fetal position slightly in the snow. She shivered, and before she knew it her eyes were closed. She tried to open them, but it became clear that she wouldn't be able to. Slowly, the sounds of the world around her got quieter, and before she fell into slumber, she swore that she could hear the sound of beating wings hitting the air . . .

* * *

Storms didn't bother dragons that much.

It got in their eyes, sure; but they usually managed to blink it out and continue on with whatever they were doing.

One dragon in particular flew around in the worst of the snow storm, near the Throat of the World. He had flown this way many, many times; he did not need perfect eyesight or weather.

The dragon's name was Odahviing, Alduin the World-Eater's right hand dragon. His scales were a darkish crimson red color, the snow tainting the color with white dots.

He really had no clear objective as to where he was going; as long as he was away from the mortals that attempted to take him down with cheap arrows and broken swords. It was pathetic, in all honesty.

He slowed to a stop and lowered himself down near the ground. He had not seen a single sign of life – no deer, rabbits, other Dovahs, or even mortals. Were they really bothered by this storm?

He narrowed his sharp eyes and looked down, examining the ground below him. It was all white, not another color to be seen.

Or so he believed, until the Dovah saw the faint black shape moving slowly through the snow.

Odahviing watched it with slight curiosity; what was it? It stumbled and fell a few times, until he decided it was, in fact, a mortal.

Oh, how mortals were stupid! He watched as it stumbled one last time, before falling onto its side. The Dovah noticed that it was . . . small.

A child? He wondered, lowering himself further.

He was not kind, or generous, or caring – but he had a strong spot of pity for small mortals. He knew it would freeze, and that thought alone made him feel . . . somewhat guilty, knowing the way the child would die.

He landed carefully next to the mortal child, extending his neck and examining it closer. A girl, who wasn't properly dressed. She seemed to be unconscious, and he let out a sigh. Oh, how he would hate himself after this.

"Yol," Odahviing said quietly, turning his head to the side so the fire did not harm the child. Like most dragons, his stomach heated up at the use of the flames, and he once again let out a noise of irritation. He slowly moved up against the child's body and made sure that his stomach was up against her, before putting his wing over her to protect her from the elements. If he could frown, he would've – he didn't really care to be keeping this child alive, but pity overcame him.

He felt the child shift unconsciously beneath his wing. The Dovah felt a certain . . . warmth that never left her hands. Like a fire or a power was flowing through them. He hadn't thought humans could have hands like that. It was strange.

He let out one last growl, angry at himself, before getting comfortable in the snow and watching the mortal underneath his wing.

He still didn't care much for the creatures.

* * *

****

A/N: Have mercy on my soul, reviewers.  
**Mercy. **


	2. Chapter 2

_"Sir, there's someone still alive in here!"_

_The captain of the guard in Riften turned around and ran down the hall to where his fellow guard's voice came from. They were currently investigating the home of the Khanifs, which had been robbed recently. The mother and father had been murdered by the robber, and they assumed that the child of the two had been taken. Well, maybe they were wrong._

_The captain turned the corner and ran down to the door the guard was looking at. He was knocking and speaking in a low, quiet voice, and attempting to open the door._

_"Sir, I think the child is in here." Said he, jiggling the doorknob._

_"Is it locked?"_

_"Yes, sir."_

_The captain sighed and took a lock pick out of his pocket. He crouched down and began to unlock the door, ignoring the shouts of "Go away!" from behind the door._

_After the lock was picked, he stood up and pushed it open with a loud creaking noise from the hinges._

_Inside was a small child, huddled in the corner. Her face was red and puffy, indicating she was recently sobbing. At the sight of the guards, she let out a horrified whimper and hid her face in her knees._

_The captain slowly walked up in front of her and crouched down, putting his hand in her shoulder._

_"It's okay, child," he said softly, "you're safe. Neither I nor the guard outside of this door will hurt you. In fact, we've come to save you."_

_The girl slowly looked up, trembling slightly. Her eyes held disbelief and terror, and the captain understood completely. Her parents had been murdered only twenty-four hours ago, and it was believable that she would not trust a stranger who came up to her._

_With a sigh, the captain stood up straight and offered her his hand._

_"Let us leave; it's quite a sad setting." He said with a small smile creeping up on his lips. She sniffled and stared at it for a moment, before taking it and standing up. He closed his large, rough hand over her small, soft one and led her out of the trashed, dark room. The child didn't look back once she exited that house.  
_

* * *

The image in her mind slowly faded to black, and her consciousness came back to her. It felt strangely warm, for some reason. With her eyes still closed, she reached up and touched the source of the warmth. The source was hard, smooth, along with scaly – wait, what?

Slowly her eyes opened, and she blinked in an attempt to get the blur from them. When she did, she was greeted by red scales that seemed to shine slightly at the edges. She let out a small mumble of nonsense and reached up, tracing her fingers along the scales. She was amazed at how smooth each scale felt. What was this?

"Hi ahst laat mahn wah aav nahl, kiir. I believed you would be out cold forever."

The child froze and gulped, before slowly tilting her head and looking up. She was greeted by the face of a -

Oh, no.

No. This isn't real.

She had heard many stories of these creatures – the creatures that burned villages, killed men and kidnapped maidens.

Evil creatures who knew nothing but hate.

Dragons.

Her breath hitched and her entire body went rigid. The dragon seemed to notice. "Do not worry. I will not hurt you, has I have no reason to."

"Y-you're a . . ."

"Dovah, yes."

The Nord girl gulped again. "Why are you next to me? What did I do wrong? Are you going to eat me? Where am I?"

"Relax," ordered the dragon, a hint of irritation in his rough voice, "I will answer one question at a time."

"Why are you-"

"I saved your small, mortal life."

"What did-"

"Nothing."

"Are-"

"No."

She blinked a few times, before coughing. "Where am I?"

The Dovah sighed and lifted his head, looking around. "You were in a blizzard. You are now in the wilderness."

He moved to the side slightly so she could stand up and look around. When she did, she gasped. "How far did I get . . .?"

"I do not know, but you seemed to try to get somewhere. Where, I do not know that either."

"I was . . . trying to get to an abandoned camp, because I believed that it would have supplies. I was running low, and I was desperate, okay?"

"Where are your parents?" The dragon asked suddenly, and the child looked down.

"Dead," She replied dryly.

"What is your name, mortal?" Honestly, the Dovah couldn't care less about her dead parents, but at the same time, there was a ping of pity in his heart. In attempt to get that ping out, he asked her name.

"Julidith," She replied, "my name is Julidith."

"I am Odahviing. You were foolish to come out here."

"I-I had no place to go, honestly! They were going to put me in an orphanage, and-" she gulped- "I'd rather die in the wilderness than the streets of Riften." Slowly, she began to back away. "I'll leave. I'm sorry to have troubled you. You could've let me die, but you didn't, so thank you mister dragon."

She turned and looked at him one last time before promptly walking away. Behind her, she could hear the dragon's wing beat and lift him up.

* * *

Rubbing her arms, she looked around. Julidith had been walking for a solid ten minutes, and there was no sign of the cave.

Well, she hadn't really been paying much attention. Her once active mind was in a daze at the recent events – she wandered from her cave, passed out, and was saved by a dragon. Really, she couldn't believe it, and she convinced herself that it was probably just a hallucination.

The storm had stopped, too; there was a tall yet sturdy enough to walk through amount of snow on the ground. Her steps were heavy and weary, and she sneezed every few minutes. The cold was beginning to get to her again, and she suddenly missed the warmth of that creature.

While walking through a small patch of trees, her steps stopped abruptly when she heard the pang of a bow string, followed by the cries of a deer. She heard the heavy laughter of men and she immediately ran behind the nearest tree and ducked behind it.

When she poked her head out, she saw two bandits, who were Khajits, walk over to a dead deer's carcass. One of them held a bow, and the other a dagger. They were saying something, but it was too quiet to hear. The one with the knife bent down and began cutting away at the animal, and Julidith gagged and covered her mouth. The sight of blood had always made her queasy.

Beginning to back away from the horrible sight, she kept her mouth covered as she tried her hardest not to throw up. Her eyes were still glued to the carcass, though, and she couldn't look away. That was, until, she felt herself run into something hard.

Julidith froze and slowly uncovered her mouth, tilting her head upwards to see what she ran into. And when she saw the face of another Khajit looking down at her with a wide grin, she almost soiled her pants.

"What is a girl like you doing out here?" He asked with a hiss in his voice. "It's dangerous."

"I-I, um, was just getting somewhere! Yeah! Nowhere important though, so you can leave me alone!" She chuckled nervously and turned around, beginning to back up. After a few steps, she tripped and fell onto her butt. The man towered over her, his grin widening.

"We can escort you," He said with a purr, "with a price, of course."

"I d-don't have anything to pay with, sir."

"I'm sure you have quite enough."

She heard the crunching of snow behind her, and she knew immediately that those steps belonged to the men she had observed a few minutes ago. Julidith looked back and forth a few times, near terrified, before quickly getting to her feet, turning to the side, and running as fast away from the men as fast as she could through the snow.

A/N: I'll try to make the next chapter much more interesting, I promise. The first few chapters, though, are always a bit boring. Eh, whatever! But anyway, I didn't think anyone would like this so thank you! It makes me feel better about my writing. uwu


	3. Chapter 3

Julidith ran as fast as her small legs could carry her through the snow. With the Khajit men on her tail, it only motivated her to run faster.

She yelped and ducked her head as an arrow went flying past her head. She looked behind and tripped flat onto her side just as he reloaded his bow. She turned onto her back quickly, and she was greeted with the tip of an arrow up against her nose.

"You shouldn't move," hissed the Khajit as his other 'friends' were coming up behind him. "My name is J'var, and these idiots are K'toria and Mhalit. I'm sure you will get to know the three of us very well."

Mhalit walked forward and grabbed her arm. J'var moved the arrow from her nose and hissed something to K'toria, who quickly came over and grabbed Julidith's other arm. Despite her objections, they pulled her up and kept their grip on her.

"We'll be taking you with it," said K'toria, "and if you try to run, you'll be shot down."

J'var tilted his head and the other two nodded, beginning to walk while half-dragging Julidith along after them. Their grips were tight on her arms, and she knew she would have bruises.

They led her through a dense forest, the trees and bushes dense with snow. Occasionally a small bit of snow would fall onto her head, but Mhalit would wipe it off. She didn't understand why, until she looked up and saw he was having the same problem.

They walked through the trees for what seemed to be forever before they got to a clearing. She blinked a few times, before letting out a whine.

Before the four stood a bandit camp, which was situated on the top of an old fort, which was crumbling, cracked and covered in overgrowth. Bandits, mainly Khajits, were patrolling and wandering the top of the wall, eventually giving the four of them looks.

The three men led her over to the gate and opened it, though Mhalit and Julidith didn't follow them the entire way. Once past the gate, Mhalit led the child through a barred door to the side, and she immediately knew it was a cell and most likely not a pleasant one.

Before the child knew it, she was shoved onto the ground and the jail door closed. Mhalit was on the other side.

"Stay quiet, and we won't have any problems." And with that, he was gone.

Julidith sat there for a moment, before scooting to the dark corner of the cell. She pulled her knees up to her chest, hid her face, and began to sob.

* * *

"Hey, you, wake up!"

Julidith slowly opened her eyes and rubbed them. She must've cried herself to sleep.

In front of her was K'toria, who was holding a bowl of soup out to her. She cautiously reached out and grabbed it, surprised that she could feel the soup's warmth through the metal bowl.

"Thank you," She said quietly, and he nodded.

"You're welcome. I'm sorry that you're here." He said just as quietly. "They weren't planning to feed you, but . . . I don't want you to starve." Before Julidith could say anything, he was up and out of the door, locking it behind him.

The child let out a sigh and picked up the spoon, sipping some of the soup. It tasted of mean, onions and carrots, and it was quite delicious.

Had that man actually snuck food to her? She was surprised. Maybe that one man wasn't so bad, but she knew she couldn't just jump to that assumption all because he gave her some soup.

She lifted up another spoonful and was joyful to find a large, cut carrot on the spoon. She quickly ate it, a smile on her face. She really got a good bowl, didn't she?

It only took her about five minutes to scarf it all down. When she finished, she frowned and put the bowl down on the ground next to her.

Outside of the barred door, she could see a group of bandits surrounding a small fire, laughing and talking to one another. She could barely make out the shape of the messenger who ran up to J'var, out of breath and terrified.

"Sir, it's been spotted, and it's heading this way." Exclaimed the messenger. J'var stood up almost immediately.

"How long until it arrives?"

"It was terribly close. Probably just a few minutes."

J'var cursed loudly and turned. "Get to your positions! It is returning!"

As everyone began to run around, Julidith couldn't help but go to the bars and watch. What was coming?

"Excuse me, what's going on?" She asked the 'guard' bandit outside of her cell door, but the woman didn't respond. She stood there with a sword in one hand and a small axe in the other.

The child sighed and moved back, turning and sitting against the door. She blinked a few times and examined the room she was in for the first time. There was a pile of used hay in the corner, hidden away by shadows. Aside from that, the only other thing she saw interesting to look at was the beetles crawling around on the floor. A stream of moonlight came in through the barred window, illuminating only a small portion of the room. Though, the light did show a large puddle, which she crawled over to to look in.

She got a slightly blurry look at herself – she saw that her short, wild red hair was dirty and knotted; her eyes were black and dull; her skin was light and covered in cuts and bruises. The more she looked at herself, the more she hated every second that followed her parent's deaths.

A sudden rumble pulled her out of her thoughts, and she quickly turned to the barred door.

The bandits were shooting arrows, throwing stones. A ferocious roar pierced the child's ears, followed by what seemed to be a short earthquake. Near terrified, Julidith moved to the back of the room, hugging herself. She was afraid, anxious –

"Dragon!"

_Dragon. _

That word shot through her head like an arrow. A dragon was attacking? Why? What did it want?

She heard a loud shriek, followed by a loud cracking noise. The guard that once stood by the door was now flung to the side, the body hitting a nearby wall. Julidith jumped at the sound of another roar, but she quickly stood up and went to the door. She could see a few burnt bodies on the ground, and she gagged. When she looked down, however, she saw something important – the keys.

She stared down at them for a moment before bending down, reaching through the bars and picking them up. She carefully unlocked the door from the outside. Once it was unlocked, she pushed it open and looked up.

In the sky, she saw something flying in circles – something large, something that cast a dark shadow down over her. She knew immediately it was the dragon.

It flew down, and was right above Julidith. It was then that she noticed the dark red color of the scales. Almost right away, she identified it.

"Hey!" She shouted at it. It turned its neck and looked down at her. It seemed as though its eyes widened and it came down, landing in front of her. "Julidith . . . joor kiir, what did they do to you?" The dragon, whom Julidith identified as Odahviing, asked. The child couldn't guess the type of tone in his voice.

"N-nothing! They just put me in a cell, and–" She was interrupted when the dragon bent his neck down.

"Get on."

**A/N:****I've already written up to chapter 5 in a notebook, now to transfer it all to the computer. Fun stuff, isn't it, fellow fanfiction writers. I'll probably update frequently, because I just **_**love **_**to write this story during free time at school. It causes me wrist pains, yes, but it's definitely worth it. Aaaanyway, I'll quit talking now. There might be another chapter tomorrow, but that depends on whether or not I'm lazy, and whether or not I'm motivated. (Writing this story is actually a lot of fun though, so I'll make sure to keep writing it!) Thank you for reading, lovelies uwu **


	4. Chapter 4

"What?" cried Julidith in surprise. "Why should I–"

"Get on," he repeated, "you are too foolish to be alone. You will be killed."

The child gulped and slowly came forward. She put her hand on his neck cautiously, before pulling herself up onto his neck. When she was sitting firmly, he suddenly spread his wings and began to lift himself up into the air. Julidith held on for dear life, already terrified.

"Relax, kiir," said Odahviing, "I will not let you fall."

"W-where are we going?"

"To an old sanctuary, where you will be safe."

Before the child could say anything else, he took off towards a mountain range in the East.

Barely ten seconds into the 'ride', Julidith was letting out whimpers of terror, closing her eyes tightly.

"Open your eyes," the Dovah ordered, loud enough so she could hear over the wind. "You are missing the world."

She slowly opened one eye and looked around, only seeing a misty white for a second. Suddenly, when the dragon shouted something in his language, the mist cleared and she could see. She gasped and opened both eyes, looking around.

Everything was so small! It felt like she was a god, being able to see the world from this angle. If the dragon could, he would have smiled – which was a strange thought to him – at her excitement. The kiir was pointing things out to him and grinning, it was almost – no, wait. What was he thinking? Julidith was a mortal child who was too weak and just plain stupid to defend herself. But at the same time, he could sense a strong . . . power inside of her. Maybe . . .

"Hey, look at that river! It looks like a snake!"

"Indeed. At least, a small snake with a large body," said Odahviing, and Julidith laughed.

"This is actually fun!"

"I apologize for ruining your excitement, but we are almost there."

After five more minutes of laughing from Julidith and small conversation, they arrived. The dragon slowly lowered himself to the cracked stone ground and lowered his neck so the child could get off. She did so, and looked around in wonder.

There was a small, crumbled stone building off to the side, with no real door or window glass. Around to the other side, there was a wall with . . . strange engravings on it.

Julidith didn't get to look around for long before Odahviing began to lecture the child.

"You could be killed out there, kiir. You are weak, foolish and cowardly. You should not have left your home, whether or not your parents have died."

The child looked at her feet and bounced on her heels. "I-I know . . ." she said quietly, and the Dovah sighed.

"However," He began, and she looked up, "despite my own good, I will take care of you until you are old enough to go out on your own."

"W-what? But you're a dragon, and–"

"It matters not." He interrupted, and he took a step towards her. "You will stay here with me, or you will die. Hin poguk."

Julidith blinked a few times, before the two stared at each other. There was an awkward silence, but it was quickly ended when she began to wail.

* * *

It had been three weeks since he had taken her in. By now, Julidith had learned the rules – no loud noises, no arguing, and no sleeping during the day no matter how tired she was. Odahviing was only keeping her around because of pity, and she knew that. So, she tried her hardest to follow his rules.

She slept in the crumbling building, but sometimes she would walk out and sleep next to the dragon when it was cold (though she usually got caught and was yelled at to go back into the building.)

It was around midnight, and she was wide awake, along with cold. She shivered and sat up, rubbing her eyes. Though she was sleeping with an old cloth she had found, she still didn't feel like it was enough. She pushed herself to her feet and yawned, going to the door. Odahviing was asleep – even he had had a rough day taking care of her, and she felt guilty.

Julidith slowly came out and looked at the 'word wall', as he called it. She walked over and looked at the engravings. According to the Dovah, the words on the wall were in Dovahzul, some type of dragon language. They were apparently 'words of power', too. She couldn't really grasp that concept, though.

She had heard him shout something in his language before, and there was a powerful effect on the goat he had used it on. It had gone flying backwards, and was dead before it had hit the ground. She wondered if she could use it, too.

She stood in a ready position, one foot back and one foot forward, and gulped. Facing the wall and clenching her fists, the child shouted, "Fus Ro Dah!"

The three words on the wall suddenly shone a bright blue, and a strange force came from her mouth. Though it was weak, it was enough to send the child flying backwards, flipping her and sending her crashing into the stone wall behind her.

Odahviing's head snapped up suddenly, and he looked back and forth between the wall and Julidith. The realization dawned on him, and he got angry. "Julidith! Meyus, joor kiir!"

He came over to her and grabbed her collar with his teeth, pulling her up. She stood unsteadily on her feet and blinked a few times, before grinning nervously as he let go of her collar.

"Why would you utter those words? Dreh hi hind wah dir? You are lucky that you did not _explode_." His voice was filled with obvious rage, and another emotion that the child couldn't detect.

"I-I'm sorry! I just wanted to see if I could do it, and–"

"You should not have tried it in the first place! You could have been gravely injured. You are foolish, weak, and_ pathetic_–"

The Dovah stopped himself when he saw the tears run down her cheeks. Her bottom lip quivered and her nostrils flared repeatedly, but it looked like she was trying her hardest to look grown up.

He didn't realize she was terrified. And when he did, he (strangely) felt bad. He almost never felt bad for anything, for he was a dragon, of course.

With a sigh, he watched the girl cry for a moment before reaching his head out and nuzzling the girl's stomach with his muzzle. Julidith blinked in surprise, though her eyes were still blurred with tears.

"Zu'u friikir," said the Dovah, though he knew she couldn't understand, "are you hurt?"

"I-I hit my t-tailbone pretty hard, but other t-than that, I'm okay."

He lifted his head and, to his own surprise, licked her face with his tongue to get the tears off.

"Do not cry, dii kiir, I am no longer mad at you." Suddenly, his tone got very serious. "What exactly happened when you shouted those words?"

"There was a blue force that came out of my mouth, and I-I don't know what it was." Julidith replied with a sniffle.

A blue force . . . did this child really use a Shout correctly the first time? Though it was weak, it had enough force to knock _her _back. Could she be . . .? No, that would be impossible. The only one who could really tell would be Paarthunax, who never let anyone onto his stupid mountain as of late.

The Dovah sighed. "Go back to bed, Julidith," he ordered, and the child nearly tripped as she turned and ran to the building. He sighed again as he watched her. What a foolish creature. If anyone had told him right now that he would learn to care about her more than himself, he would burn them.

He never expected it would someday be true.

**A/N: Finally wrote this on a computer/edited it/uploaded it. Now, I can take a nap.**  
**Also thank you to my reviewers and one very enthusiastic reviewer c; they mean a lot. Also, if anyone wants Dovahzul translations, I'll add them down here with the A/N. Thanks for reading, as always, and I'll see you in the next chapter! :D **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Sorry for the wait! School is kind of getting in the way of my writing as of late. I've also rewritten this chapter at least six times. I'm never truly satisfied with it. Also, thank you for the reviews, follows and such! Knowing people like my story makes me want to write it more. I apologize that this chapter isn't the best, but I need to upload some day. :/ Anywho, read on! Ugh, I wish this was better, lol.**

Julidith spent that morning staring at her hands, mostly in boredom. They looked dirty and kind of gross . . . she hoped they wouldn't get infected and inflate like balloons.

Her throat was raw. In fact, it was so raw that she barely manage more than a squeak. She regretted what she did last night.

The child frowned and put her hands down, getting up onto her knees and looking out of the window. The dovah looked asleep, but upon a closer look, she noted that he was wide awake.

Julidith couldn't lie, she felt bad knowing that she woke him up the night before. She felt like a complete and total nuisance.

With a sigh, she sat back on her bottom and played with her fingers for a moment before standing up and going to the window. "Odahviing!" she managed to croak, and the dragon looked up.

"Yes, kiir? What is the matter?"

"I just wanted to say–" she paused for a moment, making a face. She hated how her voice sounded so scratchy, though it felt a tad bit better than earlier. She opened her mouth to speak again, but Odahviing stopped her.

"Do not speak, it is obvious that your voice is weak. Whatever you have to say, it can be saved for a later time."

Julidith stared for a moment, before promptly turning away from the window. With a huff, she sat and crossed her arms over her chest, ignoring the pain shooting through her throat whenever she swallowed.

All was silent before the dovah made his way over to the window and stuck his head in. "Come down to the door, kiir." He ordered. "Something awaits you."

Without any objections or questions, she stood up and nearly ran to the door. What was it? A surprise? Oh, she loved surprises! Once she got to the door, Julidith took a step out and looked around. "What…?" She mumbled, taking another step forward. Though, she stopped when her foot hit something hard.

Looking down, the Nordic child examined the object for a moment before bending it down and picking it up. It was a . . . book? She ran her small hand over the leather cover, enjoying the bumpy texture to it. She undid the latch on the front cover and opened it up.

The inside, on every page, was blank. It looked to have a good 250-300 pages in it, and in the back there was a small pouch that soon fell out. She picked it up with her free hand, pulled on the laces to open it, and gasped when she saw a quill and ink bottle.

With a happy laugh, she closed the book and the pouch. Julidith looked around until she spotted Odahviing, and a grin appeared on her face. "What–"

"For you to write and practice Dovahzul in," He interrupted, "which I _will _be attempting to teach you. A foolish decision on my part, but it may come in handy someday."

"Thank you," She managed to squeak out, though her voice definitely sounded like it would get better soon.

"You are welcome. It was not easy to get here."

"How did you manage it?"

"Let us just say that I made a joor bring it up for us."

"Joor?"

The dovah sighed and turned to the word wall. "Come, kiir. Your first lesson will start today."

Without any hesitation, Julidith ran over and sat right in front of the wall with an excited grin on her face. Odahviing began, "Dovahzul, the language of dragons, has been around ever since the dragons appeared . . ."

* * *

xEight years later; Fifteen years old.x

"I believe it is time for you to meet someone, Julidith."

"Huh? Who?"

Julidith stretched and leaned against the word wall. Over endless days of practice, Dovahzul was nearly her second language. Though, Odahviing did not teach her any Thu'ums. He would leave that job up to Paarthunax.

The two were, surprisingly, very close. Even though she was a Nord and was mortal, he strangely felt like he was raising one of his own. She was talented with a bow that she had stolen a while back, and she was finally able to hunt for herself when she was thirteen. They had been together for hours on end, talking about lore, flying, or just having a small conversation. The dovah would get angry at Julidith when she came back with wounds and she didn't clean them herself, he would lick them clean.

Odahviing slowly made his way over to her and nuzzled her stomach. "It is someone who can help you, a fellow dovah like I. He resides on the Throat of the World. You remember the mountain from when you were a child, do you not?"

Julidith put her hand on his muzzle and pinched the bridge of her nose with her free hand. "I do, I do . . . honestly, I hate seeing it in the distance. Knowing I was hiding there a short while ago . . ."

"Well, we must go there on this day. The dovah, Paarthunax, may teach you some very important things." And he wouldn't tell her this, but he would be entrusting her into the other's care. The two dragons had felt that Alduin would be returning someday, and after careful debate, it was decided that she would be safest with Paarthunax.

"Like what?" asked the Nord, yawning. "What else is there for me to learn?"

"There is something more powerful that you must come to master," he explained, "something that you could use to your advantages when you are older."

Julidith frowned, and Odahviing licked her face. She laughed and turned her face away.

"Stop, stop." She said, a grin on her face. Whenever she was angry, or made a face, he did that. It had annoyed her when she was a child, but by now, she was used to it.

She adjusted the strap of the bow and quiver on her back, stretching.

"Are you ready to depart, Julidith?"

"I'm as ready as ever!"

The dovah bent down his neck, and Julidith jumped on. By now, she was used to the feeling of riding. When she was ten, he decided that she was old enough to go out for rides, and her first real ride around the sanctuary didn't go so well. She was shaking and whimpering, and no matter how many times the dovah would say that it was okay, she was still terrified. Now, it was definitely a thrill.

"Alright, Odah!" She grinned and pointed upwards. "Let's go!"

Her eyes fixed themselves on the large mountain in the distance as Odahviing lifted himself up into the air.

"So, what're we going to do when we get back?" Asked the girl, and the dovah took a moment to reply.

". . . We will see when we get back. I do not know at the moment."

Julidith didn't ask anything else. She could sense some kind of emotion in his voice, though exactly what it was, she didn't know. So, as to soothe it, she put her hand on the side of his neck and slowly stroked it.

Little did she know, that only made it worse.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

**A/N: This was supposed to be uploaded yesterday, but I was so busy that I never got a chance to even start writing it. So, it's uploaded a day late, but that's okay. I really hope this chapter makes up for the last one, which I might go back and edit heavily later. Read on! As I said a while earlier, if someone wants translations, I will go back and add them. (Added A/N: I'll begin to attempt to make my chapters longer after this one. Since the main opening is now finished, I can stop rushing myself.) **

The first few minutes of the flight were strangely quiet. The dovah wouldn't answer any questions that Julidith asked about what was going to happen. To be honest, she was getting pretty annoyed.

"Odahviing," Julidith whined, tapping the side of his neck. Odahviing looked back at her.

"Yes?"

"Fos fen koros?"

"I will not answer that, kiir."

"Why not-" She slapped her hand against her forehead. "Why do I have to go to meet this dovah? There must be more to this than you're telling me."

"Relax, Julidith. You needn't be so suspicious."

"Geh, but . . . I just have a bad feeling in my gut."

The dovah didn't reply, and Julidith frowned. Something was definitely up, but she couldn't tell exactly what. "You can talk to me, you know. I've known you for a pretty long while now."

"It is fine, now stop asking so many questions."

The annoyance in Odahviing's voice made the girl's frown deepen even more, but she did as told and asked no more questions.

Finally beginning to pay attention to her surroundings, Julidith looked up and stared. The dark, shadowy shape of the Throat of the World was visible now, and the feeling in her gut got stronger as stronger as they approached. She tensed, and the dovah couldn't resist sighing.

He knew she had always been cautious about new things. Sometimes, though, she was _too _cautious. Leaving her with Paarthunax was one of his hardest decisions, but he knew she would be safer. With Alduin's return to come in later years, he wanted her to be stronger and ready.

He had known for a long while that she was Dovahkiin, and someday she would be strong. He could no longer raise this kiir.

Sooner than Odahviing hoped, they arrived. He slowly lowered himself down onto the peak. When he landed he lowered his neck and allowed Julidith to get off. She looked around curiously and her eyes locked onto an old, gray dragon perched on top of a nearby word wall. Odahviing and Paarthunax looked at each other and nodded, almost as if they had an entire conversation just with that motion.

"Um . . . do you want to fill me in, or . . . ?" Julidith asked slowly, and Paarthunax gave her a cold look.

"This is the girl you are entrusting me with?" He sneered, and Odahviing bowed his head.

"She is not helpless, trust me. I believe she is the one you must train."

"Whoa, what?" Julidith asked in confusion, turning to Odahviing. "What is going on?"

The dovah sighed. "I cannot look after you anymore, Julidith. If I did, you would be in great danger. You must stay here with Paarthunax and learn from him, along with the Graybeards."

"L-learn? Learn what? You have to be joking around with me, right?" the Nord asked quickly.

"Zu'u los krod . . . This is goodbye." Said the red dovah, somewhat gloomily. Julidith blinked a few times, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"No . . . don't leave me here!" She yelled, clenching her jaw. "I don't know this dovah. I don't know what you want me to learn. Why-"

"For your safety," He snapped, spreading his wings slightly. "You will die if you remain in my care."

She looked angry for a moment, before the tears spilled and she hugged his neck tightly. "Don't go, Odah," She cried, "please."

Odahviing stayed still for a moment, before he nuzzled her hair. "You will meet me again." He said quietly. "Be strong, kiir. You must grow and become powerful. I will meet you again when the time is right."

Julidith sniffed and let go of his neck, wiping her eyes with her arm. "But I still don't understand . . ."

"You will someday." Said the dovah, looking up at the sky. "I must go."

The Nord backed away towards Paarthunax as the dovah in front of her lifted him up into the air. She waved sadly, and he looked at her one last time before flying away from the mountain.

Julidith clenched her fists, took a few deep breaths, and then turned to face Paarthunax. "So, how is this going to work?"

"Joor kiir, you must not let your anger get to you-"

"My anger? Oh, it's not just anger, I'm furious! I don't know who you are or what I will be 'learning', but I sort of don't want to know." She then pointed in the direction that Odahviing went. "Take me after him."

"I cannot do that," Paarthunax stated simply, and Julidith narrowed her eyes.

"Why not?"

"It is like you disregarded everything he had said. You will be much safer up here than with him. The Graybeards eagerly await your arrival."

"Gray—what?" She made a face. "Who are they? What importance do they have to me?"

"Did he not tell you what you are?"

"I'm a Nord, and that's about as much as I know."

Paarthunax leaned his neck down a bit so he was eye level with Julidith. "You, for whatever reason, are Dovahkiin. Why you were made the Dovahkiin, I am not sure of myself. Your attitude is nothing that I would like to deal with, you are too lightweight and you do not look like you could ever hold your own in a battle."

Julidith crossed her arms, looking offended. "I've fought before! I have really good aim, I'll have you know. A bow is my best weapon. But, for now, I'll disregard your . . . insults. What's a Dovahkiin?"

The dovah sighed. "It seems you have much more to learn," he said, "this may as well take forever. You must listen, no matter what. Daydreaming is not an option, walking out is not an option."

"Well are you going to teach me anything right now?"

"No, seeing as—"

Before he could finish, the Nord promptly turned away and began to storm down the only path she saw, and she was glad when Paarthunax did not say anything to try and stop her.

She didn't know where it led, or how long it was, but all she knew was that it would be a good chance to cool off. That had happened way too fast for her liking. She would have been okay with it if Odahviing had talked to her about it beforehand, but no, he had to go and abruptly leave her there with a dovah she did not know, let alone trust. Anger consumed her being, and she felt nothing but hatred for both of them. Had they decided to change custody? What was she, a belonging? They couldn't just give someone away like an object!

After a minute or two of angrily grumbling to herself, she finally sat down against a snowy rock, hid her face in her knees, and cried. It only lasted for a simple minute, though, before she wiped her eyes and looked up.

If Odahviing wanted her to be safe, and wanted her to grow, then she would. Not for anyone else, but only for him. Julidith didn't want to wait years and years for him to return to her, but life didn't seem to be on anyone's side. It never was.

As she looked up at the sky and tried to calm herself down, she wondered if the dovah was thinking about her, too.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

**A/N: Instead of having Lydia as a companion in later chapters, though she will make an appearance, I want to have a character of yours! I will accept characters to be added to this story that can interact with Julidith, give her quests, or just be there to give advice and keep the story going longer than originally planned! If you wish for your character to be added, send either a PM or put in the reviews your character's name, age, weapon/magic, background, gender, personality, etc. and what role you want them to be in: Companion, who is featured in nearly every chapter; quest giver, who gets to be in a few chapters; or just a local character, who gets featured every so often. If you are a companion character and would like your character to be courted with Julidith or a different Skyrim character, please state so. For companion characters, I am adding two of those. So, the 'winners' will be stated in either the next chapter or chapter 9!  
Besides that, I must thank you all for your reviews. It makes it a lot more fun to write this story. Read on, then~!**

"I've been on this mountain for weeks now; I want to go down to High Hrothgar or even down to Ivarstead! You can't keep me cooped up here forever you know."

Julidith stood near the path that led down to High Hrothgar, facing the word wall. She had tried to sneak away a few minutes before, but she had been caught by Paarthunax. Sadly, he wasn't as stupid as she thought. Well, she knew he wasn't stupid at all, but it still ticked her off.

"You cannot leave yet, Julidith. You are not ready. Bad things are happening, and if you get discovered so soon . . ."

"But aren't the Graybeards your loyal followers? They wouldn't do anything to hurt me, I know it!"

"Geh, they would not, but you cannot reveal yourself to them yet. It is not time, young Dovahkiin."

Then what about Ivarstead? Can't you let me go down there? No one knows about this 'Dragonborn' business; I'm sure I'll just be seen as a traveler," Julidith reasoned.

"You could be injured by someone. None of these towns or holds is safe, as you believe. There is always someone bad." Paarthunax reasoned back. The child just didn't understand that something could go wrong, and if she was injured he would most likely not be able to help her. But instead of thinking through it logically, she had a scowl on her face and was set on going to socialize with _someone. _

"You are such a stick in the mud," She said angrily, spitting on the snow next to her, "jerk. Do you know how boring it is up here? You and your stupid 'meditating' every five seconds, when it's nothing more than an excuse to sleep."

"It is actually an excuse for me to get some peace from your constant whining and talking." He hissed back, his patience quickly running thin. He was about to let this girl go; let her get hurt or kidnapped. He would, if she wasn't a person of great importance.

"I don't whine, or even talk a lot!" Julidith crossed her arms, her scowl growing. "Besides, there has to be someone down in Ivarstead or High Hrothgar who would appreciate my attempts at starting a conversation." Suddenly, tears filled her eyes.

"Julidith, do not cry . . ."

"Since I was taken away from him, I decided to try and be as cooperative as possible with you. He wanted me to grow strong, so I wanted to grow strong. But how am I supposed to grow as a person especially if I cannot leave this summit?" Her voice cracked slightly, and the dovah sighed. He knew what she was doing – when she wanted something so badly, she would begin to cry.

"I would prefer if you focus more on your Dragonborn studies–"

"Please? I'll come right back up when I'm done. Besides, I might be able to get a new spell or a plant that could help with my 'annoying colds.'" She sniffled. "_Please?"_

Paarthunax thought for a moment, before he shook his head and gave in. "Alright, alright. You may go. Follow the path around High Hrothgar, but do not let them know of your presence."

Julidith grinned, jumping up and down. "Oh, thank you! I'll make sure they don't know I was there. I'll be a ghost!" She ran forward a bit, hugged the dovah's neck, then turned and ran down the path enthusiastically. As he watched her, he had a feeling that she wouldn't be coming back as soon as she had promised. 

* * *

When the fifteen-year-old realized that there was no way to get around High Hrothgar without going through it, she stood there with a hand on her hip. She _could _attempt to go down the mountain, which would probably result in her death, but it was almost the only option.

She walked over to the side and looked over the edge with a gulp. There were certain parts where there were edges she could go down, but most of it was a solid drop. The stupidity of this was horrendously obvious, and she really didn't want to do this. However, she would get caught if she went through the building . . .

Shaking her head; she turned back to the doors of the building and walked to them. Anything would be better than risking her life by going down the side. She pushed them open slowly, and walked in.

The hallway she was in was dark, lit only by the small candles that were in the crevices in the wall. She crouched down slightly as she made her way down the hallway, turning and poking her head out into the main room.

She felt like letting out a sigh when she saw four men standing in a circle, talking to each other. She immediately could tell that they were the Graybeards; the exact people that she didn't want to run into.

Julidith literally stayed there, crouched down, for about an hour before the old men decided to stop talking and break apart. Her calves were screaming at her, and she wanted nothing more than to stand up, but she stayed there until the area was clear. Slowly she came out from her hiding spot, sticking to the wall as she went to the main doors.

It looked quite . . . interesting, to say the least. The girl felt herself wanting to stay in here, to study this place more. Alas, she couldn't let the Graybeards know she was there yet. What a shame.

She went over to the door on the left, slowly pushed it open, snuck out, closed it behind her and stood up. When she did she let out a sigh, bending over and rubbing her calves for a moment. She wanted to say sorry, but then she realized that she'd be talking to her legs and she'd sound insane.

With a cough, Julidith stood up and began making her way down the path of the Seven thousand Steps.

Seriously, who would build seven thousand steps? Who would even want to go up it? Going up that many steps would be what in-shape people do. Julidith frowned at the thought of having to go back up these.

She took her bow off of her back and held it at the ready, in case she was either attacked or found a good goat worth shooting. As she went down the steps, one thing was on her mind – what she was going to do when she arrived in Ivarstead!

"Did you make the trek up the steps?"

Julidith jumped and readied her bow with an arrow, swinging it to the side. She let out a sigh and lowered it when she saw that it was only a woman, who sat in front of one of the markers.

"Um . . . yes, I did." The fifteen-year-old lied. "I heard there were some good goats up there for hunting and such."

"It's also dangerous," said the woman, "It's a good thing you came back alive."

Julidith raised an eyebrow. "Why is that?"

"The steps are very dangerous; there have been many people who have died."

"I'm not so stupid as to get myself killed."

The woman opened her mouth to say something else, but Julidith simply scoffed and put her bow on her back. "Stop talking to me," she said simply before heading down into Ivarstead. It wasn't as glamorous as she had imagined the town to be. In fact, it was pretty crappy. Everyone that she walked past either gave her a weird look or ignored her in general. It took her a solid ten minutes to walk around the entire place, including the short moments she took to examine some things, and it was kind of boring. No one would talk to her.

Julidith went onto the 'main road' and stood there, facing the way that led to the other exit of the town. Her eyes narrowed and she pulled out her bow when three men slowly came down the road in her direction. She had a knack for picking out the suspicious.

Before she could shoot any kind of arrow or get into any kind of fight, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her into a side area off of the road and covered her mouth.

"Stay quiet, I'm going to help you out."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I'm sorry for such a late update! School, stress, and a lot of other stuff have put this out. Now, I can finally get this updated. Praise Talos.**

* * *

Narrowing her eyes, Julidith went to make a noise, but was stopped when her 'abductor' put a finger to his lips. Her eyes widened slightly, but she stayed silent and did as he showed. The group of men passed by, not uttering a word to each other. She could see that, obviously, these men were here for someone. Who, she was unaware of.

After they passed, he removed his hand from her mouth. She ran out from the alley and whipped around to look at him. "Who do you think you are?! You should know better than to grab a girl like that–"

Julidith stopped, and her breath hitched slightly. The man who grabbed her wasn't a man at all; it was only a boy, near her age. His brown hair covered his eyes, and it reached down nearly to his shoulders. His clothes were dirty, and honestly, it frightened her, though only slightly.

"Sorry," He said in a quiet voice, "I didn't want you to run into those men. They're bad. In fact, they're a lot of trouble here."

"Who are they? Who are _you_?"

". . . I can't answer that here. If you would follow me, I can answer your questions–"

Julidith stomped her foot. "Do you think I'll follow you anywhere after you grab me and pull me into an alley? There is no way I trust you that much, mister!"

The boy shook his head, his long hair following suit. "I won't hurt you. If you hadn't noticed, I just helped you. They would've hurt you, mountain girl."

". . . Mountain girl? How do you know I lived up there?"

He stared at her from behind his bangs for a moment, before shaking his head and turning around. He went into the alley, his figure seemingly disappearing into the darkness. After a moment of angry muttering and sighing, Julidith ran forward quickly to follow along behind him.

After a while, she no longer heard his footsteps, and she felt quite alone in the dark. She stopped and stood in her spot, her heart racing slightly at the silence. ". . . Hello?"

Suddenly, a bright blue light nearly blinded her. She put her arm up in front of her eyes and shut them tightly, though she opened one slightly after a moment. She saw the boy standing there, the light illuminating from his dirty, cut up hand.

"Sorry," He said after a while, "it's the only light source I have. I can dim it down a little if you need."

"I-It's fine," said Julidith, putting her arms back down, "I can live with it. Just . . . where are we going?"

"Through this door," He reached out his other hand to a child-sized door. He pushed it open with a bit of effort and crouched down to go through it. Though she was confused, she followed along anyway. At his order, she made sure to close it behind her. Following along closely behind him, she dared not to look down at the wet or squishy substances her feet found their way into. Just when she felt like her lower back was going to give out, he finally stood up and said, "We're here!"

Julidith stood up immediately and stretched, putting her hands on her lower back. She opened one eye and looked at the darkness. "Uh . . . it's really dark."

She heard the boy laugh, and suddenly, his light went out.

"H-hey! That's not funny!" She shouted with a hint of terror in her voice. Had she just walked into a trap?

"Sorry, sorry." He replied finally, and light slowly filled the room by candles that he walked around and lit. Once they were all lighting up the room, Julidith looked around in wonder. There were a lot of bookshelves, filled top to bottom with books with worn spines. The floor was stone and was covered in papers; papers that had diagrams and drawings of dragons, mages and trolls on them. She bent down and picked up one of the dragon drawings, frowning at how quickly she recognized it. She suddenly wished she hadn't picked it up, and she let it float to the floor.

"What is this place?" She asked, crossing her arms. "Why did you bring me here, exactly?"

"It's my library," The boy replied, pulling over two chairs and sitting down in one, "it's a perfectly safe place to talk."

Julidith sat in the other chair, her defense obviously on edge in case he pulled any moves. "Oh, okay. I want my questions answered now, then."

He smirked and pushed his bangs up out of his eyes, revealing his multi-colored eyes. His right eye was orange, and his left was a mix of blue and silver. It was quite peculiar, to be honest, but Julidith didn't say anything against it.

"My name is Fridgar," He waved a hand, "though it's not that important. I know everything about you, mountain girl. I spend nearly all of my time up on that mountain; it's kind of hard to ignore a dragon and a girl."

"So are you saying you're a creep?" Julidith crossed her arms, raising her eyebrows. Fridgar laughed and shook his head, leaning forward a bit in his seat.

"I'm not a creep, I swear. I just like to do research. I mean, it's not like I watched everything you did. I just recorded your important information." He reached behind him and held up a book, with its cover half off and the pages looking old. "I've wrote it all in here."

"What?!" She exclaimed, snatching the book from his hands. She opened the pages and quickly flipped through them; nearly appalled at all of the diagrams, information . . . he had a page where it described entirely how she acted throughout her normal day. How could anyone spy on her so easily?

A frown appeared on Julidith's face, and she closed it. "Why would you record my information? That's creepy. I don't know you, I don't know this place, I don't–"

"Calm down, this isn't because I'm obsessed with you and I want you to marry me or something." Fridgar took it back and dropped it onto the floor. "It's because you're an interesting girl. I've never heard of someone who lives with a dragon and shouts on a daily basis."

"You know about my shouts?"

"Of course! They're really loud, you know." He jerked his thumb in the direction of a small window, which Julidith didn't even know was there, "I can hear you sometimes. It's pure. Your _true _voice is released every time you shout for that dragon. The voice you're speaking with now isn't anything like your real one."

Julidith looked at her hands, playing with her fingers. "I still don't understand why I have this ability. Paa–I mean, the dragon, hasn't told me much. Apparently I'm not old enough, but I'm responsible!"

"I can tell you everything he never told you," Fridgar stood up and walked over to his bookshelves, "I have every piece of information right here."

Something in Julidith's gut told her this was wrong. She promised to respect her elder's opinion and to not get into business that wasn't her concern until she was older, but at the same time . . . she wanted to. Her curiosity peaked; her mind was set on the answers, and the feeling in her gut slowly faded away.

"Are you sure those books can tell me everything?"

"Yes. I've read them all, front to cover. I can point out key pages and read them to you if you'd like."

"I can read," She said defensively.

"But you might not be able to pronounce all of the words, you know." Fridgar pointed out, and Julidith pouted. She stayed there in silence for a moment, before she took in a deep breath.

"Alright, show me everything you know."

* * *

Julidith really didn't think she'd be spending that much time with Fridgar. They sat next to each other against the wall and read nearly all of the books in his collection. He explained to her the history of dragons (with help from the book), and something called a Dragonborn, or a Dovahkiin. Apparently, they were the ultimate dragon slayer, and could use their shouts against the dragons. Julidith knew she would never use her shouts against her protector, but the way that Fridgar worded it, it was like she had to.

"I really think you must be Dragonborn," said the boy, closing their latest book, "if you weren't, you wouldn't have mastered any shouts by now."

"S-so, my job is to kill dragons?"

"Exactly. See? You're not as stupid as I thought."

With a frown, Julidith turned away, moving her feet from side to side. It seemed like a lot of weight to be on her shoulders. She didn't want that, honestly. She didn't want to hurt anyone or anything as much as Fridgar said she would have to one day.

She sighed and looked up at the window, noticing that the light that was once shining through was darker. Her eyes widened slightly, and she frantically stood up. "I-I have to go! I'm going to be in so much trouble!"

"H-hey, calm down!" Fridgar stood up as well. "Are you really going to go back up that mountain at this time of night?"

"I have to! I promised I wouldn't be down here long, and now it's late!"

"Listen; just . . . stay here tonight, okay? I'll walk you up tomorrow at dawn."

"Eh?! How do I know you won't rape me or something?" Julidith took a step back.

"Please," Fridgar said, clasping his hands together, "I won't. I don't want you getting hurt, honestly. I couldn't bear to lose all possible future information!"

She gritted her teeth, looked at the window, and sighed. Against her better judgment, she waved a hand and said, "Fine. I'll stay. But I warn you, I'm a light sleeper; so if you try anything funny I'll make sure you pay."

The boy in front of her just held up his hands and chuckled, backing away slowly. "I swear on my life that I won't do anything. I'll just let you sleep."

"No recording my sleeping habits."

"What? But–"

"No buts! No recording how I sleep. I'll check every single book you own just to make sure you don't."

"Man, you're pretty self-conscious, aren't you?"

"Shut up, you stupid creep!"


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Okay, we've had enough time for characters. I thank the ones who put in an entry; it means a lot that you'd like to have your character in my story! So, here are the winners: **

**Axondea Dawn-Bringer from LadtOfSummerset!**

**Morgana Grimslock from ManhattanTheory! **

**And Athale Nyrix from Jalking!**

Your characters will be featured in this story for sure; but it may take a while before I get to yours. You'll also find out their roles when they come in!

_**I have to say that I'm sorry for random updates every few days or weeks. I'm really busy, and I'm trying to write this whenever I have time. Please be patient. This chapter is also rushed and may be edited heavily later. For now, though, enjoy.**_

* * *

_I had a brother once, when I was very little._

_He's only a small figment of my mind now. I can't remember his name or voice, but . . . his face, his innocent, chubby face still sticks in the back of my mind. He had shaggy hair, and multi-colored eyes from mother and father. It was something so rare; I think I had admired him for it. He was always smiling, at least, in my mind he was._

_I can barely remember that day, long before my parents died, I went to his room and knocked. He didn't answer my knock, so I decided to let myself in. Grasping the large door handle with my small hand, I used all of my force to push his wooden door open. He liked to have things hanging off of the back of it from nails, like his coat or his bag, so it added extra weight._

_When I walked in I called his name, though I didn't hear it come out of my mouth. I looked around, only to see that he wasn't in there, to my surprise. The window was open and the curtains swayed in the wind that blew in. I waddled over to his bed, climbed up, put my hands on the windowsill and looked out. I didn't see him outside, either. Where had my brother gone?_

_Last night, he and my father had a big fight. My brother wanted to be a scholar, to study and see the rest of this world. My father said that it was useless and he should just stick to fishing and selling them at the family's dirty stall. That didn't sit well with my brother, who was three years older than me and had a mind of his own, and he said some really nasty things to father. I stood at the corner, peeking and watching in on the fight. There was lots of yelling, much to my dismay._

_Then, father hit my brother._

_Father smacked him right across the face, making my brother stumble slightly. There was a long moment of silence, and I felt my heart stop for a moment. Father never hit us. This was the first time he had ever done such a thing out of his anger._

_"I'm sorry," My father began slowly, holding up his hands, but my brother didn't want to hear it. He stood up straight and, with a straight face, turned and stormed right out of the room. He passed right by me, and I watched as he went to his room and slammed the door. My father shook his head, sat down, and held his head in his hands. I hated seeing them like this. It made me hurt, too._

_I went to my brother's room and knocked in a special pattern so he would know it was me. It took a moment before the door opened, and he stared down at me. His eyes were red and his nostrils were flaring, which was exactly what my nostrils did when I tried not to show I was upset. I gave him a sympathetic look, and he let down his hard shell and began to cry in front of me. I opened up my arms, allowing him to pick me up and hold me close to him. He closed the door with his foot and sat down on his bed, crying up against me. I hugged him as tightly as I could, and he returned it. I hated seeing him cry. My brother . . . I cared about him so much. His sadness was my sadness. His happiness was my happiness. I loved my brother, even more than I loved anyone else in my life._

_As I stood in his now empty room, worry built in my small chest. I called for my mother and father loudly, my voice shaky. Where was my brother? Did he go somewhere? Why would he leave without me?_

_I heard the mixture of my father's heavy footsteps and my mother's light ones as they came to the room and stopped in the doorway. My mother let out a gasp and my father shook his head. I looked up at him, teary-eyed. "Where is he?" I asked, and my father sighed._

_"He's gone out, Julidith," He replied slowly, "he'll be back soon. Don't worry, alright?"_

_I nodded and watched as my father led my mother away from the room. Her face was in her hands . . . I wondered why, and now that I look back on it, now I know._

_I sat on the floor, waiting for my brother to come back and play with me. I hummed a children's tune I had learned from one of my mother's friends, one that my brother and I sang when we felt sad or were just plain bored. I waited for hours, oh so patiently. I'd wait all day for him to come back._

_He never came back.  
_

* * *

Jolting awake, Julidith looked around frantically to see where she was. Seeing that she was in Fridgar's 'study' still, she sighed and rubbed her forehead as she took in a deep breath. She hated that dream with every fiber of her being. She had tried her best to forget her brother, and she had, somewhat – she had forgotten his name and his voice. The only thing that haunted her still was his face.

"Hey, are you alright?" Fridgar's voice came from the side, and Julidith looked at him.

"Y-yeah, I'm okay. I just had a bad dream, that's all."

"Can you tell me what it was about?"

She sighed and pushed some hair out of her bangs. "I guess . . . it was about my brother. He left me when I was little, probably because of a fight with my father. I don't want to think about him anymore, but he's always there. I gave up finding him after my parents died."

The boy sitting in the chair across from her stayed silent for a moment, before murmuring, "I'm sorry to hear that. It must be horrible to lose a sibling and your parents."

"Yeah," Julidith agreed, "it sucks. I wish that I could still be living with them, not with a dragon. It's hard, my social skills are horrible, and I don't exactly smell like roses."

"I could tell."

"What?"

"Nothing!"

She sighed and looked at the window, her eyes widening as she saw the orange light that flooded in through the small window. "Hey, it's dawn! Can I go?" She asked eagerly.

Fridgar waved a hand. He pushed his bangs out of his eyes with his other hand. "Sure, go ahead. As long as you know the way out, and don't get killed on the way up."

"I'm not a child, I can take care of myself." Julidith stood up and crossed her arms, kicking the prickly blanket of Fridgar's that was underneath of her. "Besides, you don't need to worry about me."

"Who said I did?" He scoffed, though there was a small smile on his face.

"'As long as you don't get killed on the way up.'" She mocked, making a face. The boy in front of her let out a quick chuckle and shook his head, his shaggy hair following.

"Just go, Julidith," He said, "before your guardian gets even more worried about you. You wouldn't want him to burn you alive, now would you?"

Julidith blinked a few times, before running over to the door and pulling it open. "Right, right! Okay, goodbye Fridgar! Thank you for the information and thank you for letting me sleep here. Maybe I'll come back down here soon!" She said, her voice rushed.

"You don't have to, you kno—"

"Sorry, I can't talk anymore. Bye!" She gave a jumpy wave, and with that, she was out of his study.

Fridgar shook his head; somewhat hoping that she _wouldn't _come back. He didn't want to spend time with her and get close to her.

Not again.

* * *

"_Where _were you? I did not say you could stay down there all night. And what do you do?"

"I stay down there all night."

Julidith stood there with her head down and her hands together in slight shame. Due to the tone in Paarthunax's voice, she could tell that the dragon was angry with her. She hated when he was angry, it never led to anything good. It usually ended in more work for her.

"Why?" He asked finally, and it sounded like he was trying so hard not to lash out on her like he usually did. Well, it wasn't really 'lashing out,' but Julidith could consider it that way.

"I made a friend," She explained, making nervous hand motions, "and he let me stay with him. He had a lot of cool books, too! So, I guess I got kind of caught up and didn't realize the time. It was really late and too dangerous to come back up, so . . . yeah. I didn't want to go against you, I really didn't."

The old dragon in front of her let out a rumbly sigh, shaking his large head.

"You will not even think about going back down there for a long while. This mountain is where someone like you belongs, not down there with a 'friend.' You will stay here and train, you do _not _need to spend time down there. Understood?"

"_Understood_?"

"Y-yes, understood!" Julidith nodded quickly, jumping slightly. When the dragon turned around and went back towards the word wall, she stuck her tongue out at him. He was old and a stick-up in her eyes, 'Odah' was never like this.

With a sigh, she sat down in the snow and looked up at the gray, cloudy sky. It was ironic how the sky reflected how she felt. There went her chances of going back down there to socialize; to see Fridgar and read some more of his books again. There went her chances of learning more about herself.

It royally sucked.


End file.
